Spring cleaning—you either live for it or live to avoid it. This is the time of year when you clean out your closets and scrub what you’ve neglected all year so you can start fresh during the springtime. One of the things that people often forget—or choose to forget—is cleaning their roof. To make it manageable, follow these three tips when it comes to tackling your roof during spring cleaning.

1. Check for discolored streaks.

Discolored streaks on a shingle can often indicate the growth of mold or fungi. To avoid these stubborn stains from eating away at your roof, a quick treatment of chlorine bleach or copper sulfate solution can kill the mold. To do this, simply use a garden sprayer to treat the discolored areas and NEVER power wash your shingle roof as the water pressure is much too strong and will loosen shingles far before their time. If you do have your tile roof power washed, give us a call to inspect for any broken tiles.

2. Cut back your trees.

Trees are beautiful additions to landscape, but they can wreak havoc on your roof. To start, trim back tree limbs that are touching the roof or close to touching it. Tree limbs can scratch at your shingles and cause them to prematurely loosen, shortening the lifespan of your roof. Cutting back your trees will also reduce moss growth by allowing sunlight to dry your roof, preventing the buildup of moisture. To treat existing moss, avoid buying chemicals because the runoff will kill your landscaping; instead, nail zinc or copper strips to the ridgeline to create an environment where moss can’t grow.

3. Inspect for any damages.

For more severe damage, such as missing shingles and chimney damage, make sure to hire a contractor to uncover these issues. Keeping up with roof maintenance will help avoid serious damage in the future, leading to a longer-lasting roof and a happier you! Here at Hercules Roofing, we will take care of the inspections for you before a real emergency happens.

If you have a tile roof, you already have one of the most reliable roofs possible. When installed correctly, tile roofing will last you for many years - when you’re using materials like concrete, clay, and terracotta, your roof is less likely to rot or be seriously damaged due to fire.

Even with these benefits, tile roofing isn’t perfect. Though your tile roof can last decades, you still may need to replace individual tiles or entire sections. Roof tiles are heavier than asphalt shingles, so you’ll need to make sure your roof can support the weight in the first place. Once the tile is in place, it’s one of the most durable materials you can have, but it’s still susceptible to heavy wind. If you’ve experienced a hurricane, for example, you’ll want a professional inspection to ensure nothing has cracked. If you do have a broken tile, an installer can usually replace it individually or by square, which is much cheaper than replacing an entire roof!

Thankfully, those of us in Florida don’t often have to deal with ice forming on our roofs, but this is another weather phenomenon that can cause icicles to form and potentially cause roof leaks.

You also will need to replace your underlayment, or the material beneath your roofing, at least once every 10 years. If you don’t keep up with your underlayment, you run the risk of your entire roof becoming unstable, and it may leak and cause other problems as a result.